August 2001 Daily Fishing Reports

The goal today was albies or bonito for Carl Lindeborg and Dave Mannion as we set out from Green Pond, heading east. There were some boats drifting off Green Pond as we cleared the jetties and others were slowly working off Waquoit, but I knew where those albies were, and after a few casts it was off to Osterville. Sure enough, there was surface action aplenty there, although much of it was made by bluefish that were only too happy to eat plugs and flies at will. But there were also albies crashing in good numbers, and it was Carl who finally collected his first funny fish which gave him a long fight on eight pound line. We had other shots, but the fish were definitely finicky today and there would be no more albies hooked up or landed. On the other hand, as we went from Popponsset to Succonesset, there were bluefish blitzes going on that were so thick you could hear the fish just ripping schools of baby pogies as we went on. What looked to Jim and Dave like seaweed on the bottom were actually nervous pogies that were well aware that today was not their day. Carl managed his first fly rod fish in saltwater and was impressed with how hard those blues fought and I held out hope that we would find more albies for Dave to connect with. But it was only blues and more blues, with the action at Succonesset even crazier than things to the east, if that were possible, with more birds working over bait and blues than I could possibly dream up. We put out a few casts in hopes of scoring a bass for Carl to complete a slam, but it was no avail. Back at the ramp, I spent some time with Carl and Dave going over maps to point out ramps they could use for their own adventures, and I suspect that I'll run into them somewhere on the southside very soon.

Today was Steve Murphy's return trip, this time with Steve Vazza whose family owns an estate on Penzance Point, which is a good thing since the ramp in the Hole was crawling with activity and every available parking space was filled much earlier than normal. Parking the truck and trailer on the Point certainly made things easier for me. And fortunately, the fishing was very good, with the fish just belting eels from Quick's to Cuttyhunk. The final count was 13 fish, with only one under 30 inches and at least three in the 38 to 40 inch range. Clearly, Murph's fortunes have changed and I, for one, couldn't be happier. With Steve and family headed to Minnesota to start a new career, I'm sure the fish in the lakes out there are in for a workout. But I also know that he'll back out this way next summer in search of his first forty pounder.

Today was one of those days when the wind was just too tough for good fly fishing, but Rick Black, his son, and son-in-law gave it their all. These three were a bundle of laughs, even as they made every attempt to get something other than the skunk to put on the grille that evening. There were none of the small blues or bass that have been filling the southside recently, with even Succonesset surprisingly quiet. After rocking and rolling thereabouts, I headed back towards Popponesset where we had started out earlier and the prospects for any fish sightings were dim. With the tide dropping, I elected to finish the day at Osterville, where with the wind and bait in the area, I hoped for at least some blues, but felt there might be a bonito or two around as well. What we got, instead, was the first show of albies that I have witnessed this year, with some really great crashes and surface activity, but alas no hook-ups. Had we been able to stay out longer, the prospects for a fish or two looked good, but Rick had cooking duties to attend to so we called it an afternoon, even with busting albies still all around us.

With the bonito season basically a bust around the southside this year, I headed for the Vineyard with Jeff Howard, one of my favorite people to fish with. Jeff hails from Sandwich so we get plenty of chances to fish with each year, but this was our first trip together designed with funny fish in mind. I scoped out Waquoit, L'Hommedieu, and Hedge Fence on our way over to Martha's waters, but it quickly became apparent that the best action would be had around State Beach. Sure enough, there were pods of bones here and there, but there were also far too many boats fishing on far too many fish. We saw some serious running and gunning and also witnessed one angler lose a fish when an angler from another boat cast over the line which was tight with a fish. Jeff and I basically tried to just set up our own drift, and we had some shots, but it seemed that every time we had the fish too ourselves, we'd hear that wonderful roar of a boat coming down on us, with rods flying and lures whirling. It certainly wasn't the kind of action I wanted, but at least it was an introduction for Jeff to the bonito scene, if not Mr. Bone himself.

Just a week ago, I got a call from Steve Murphy, one of the best anglers I have fished with over the last several years - and also one of the worst snakebitten, that is up until today. Steve had brought everyone from his brother Brian to various friends on trips, with too many of his guests catching some really nice stripers while Murph could only smile and offer them congratulations. All I could think of was what a magnanimous friend Steve was, but each time he fishes with me I offer extra bribes to the fish gods that he would bring in his own big bass. Looking back, this trip started out like our earlier adventures together, with Steve's friend John Barker breaking things open with a nice 38 inch fish from inside Quick's, which was quickly released after some photos (see photo page). As the tide started to slack thereabouts, I headed farther down the islands where I had recently found fish and let's just say it doesn't get better than this. John took another 38 incher and then topped that with one that was over 40 inches. And those were on eels, with some really incredible action also shaping up on top in one of the rips as fish from 30 to 36 inches blasted top water plugs, making for extra excitement. But the best news was that Murph finally caught and released his own 38 incher, which he proudly displayed for the camera (see photo page). With high hopes for our next trip together on Sunday, we said our good-byes at the dock with Steve's smile on this occasion even larger than usual.

This was one of those times when I was really glad that I book a block of time for folks who are coming from out of town, with plans to fish one day but with back up days set aside in case of foul weather or unforeseen circumstances. George Nelson from Michigan was in town for a week's vacation, staying close to Sandy Neck with his family. Unfortunately, George's back went out on his first day of vacation and he was laid up, despite the best efforts of a local chiropractor until Thursday and even then things were touch and go. That morning I picked up George, his daughter Amanda, and her boyfriend Matt Jacobson at their rental house and we headed for Barnstable Harbor. Frankly, the fishing wasn't red hot, but we did manage some bass inside on Horseshoe Bar and over on the flats by Chapin's Beach using soft plastics and jigs, and I made sure there was no bouncing around in the Katie G. that day. George and the kids were great fun to fish with, and I was never so happy to see somebody get out on local waters given everything George had gone through.

Today I got the chance to fish again with Charles Mann, his son Griff, and Mark Tenerowicz, with our objective bass along the Elizabeths and perhaps a bonito or two. Well, the bonito have been scarce this year, with the only action I have found with any consistency around State Beach with just some small pods keeping many boats very active. The bass were once again will to take both flies, poppers, and soft plastics along the islands, with steady action around Naushon and finally down around Pasque where we found schoolies ambushing bait in earnest. On our return to Woods Hole, there were bass popping along Red Ledge that made for interesting boat handling and careful presentations. All in all, another successful day and I was happy to hear that Mark has been fishing with consistent vigor around his home waters of Marion, with some fish to report as well.